Facebook-inspired Group Paves Way for Server Chip Changes

A group spearheaded by Facebook is proposing new ways to design server systems, including a change that could help hasten the arrival of mobile phone-style chips for server systems.

The group, called the Open Compute Project, was formed to help drive down the cost of building and operating computer rooms. It was inspired by Facebook’s internal server developments, which led to the formation of a non-profit that takes technical contributions from many companies–just as the evolution of open-source software is managed collectively.